Shadow On The Road Ahead

The black-clad woman sat on her own in a dark corner of the club. She stared at the shotglass on the table, holding it thoughtfully and paying little mind to the white-clad man sitting opposite her.

"Are you asking me to leave?" She asked, lifting the shotglass to her lips and downing the rest of the green liquid. She made a face as it went down. Altairian whiskey really wasn't her brand, but she had made the mistake of letting Toriares choose what they drank.

"I'm asking now," Toriares said, flicking a lock of his white hair from his face as he downed his shot. "In two days, I'll have to make you."

"Uh-huh," she said, pouring another shot. "What's the deal? Kuran's five days away from Khalis. I own this colony, Toriares, and unless you have serious power behind this request, I don't plan on giving it up. Not even to my own brother."

"Be reasonable, Marasi," Toriares said, his brown eyes meeting hers. "I think you know what I'm doing here. I'm trying to be nice about it, and I'm giving you all the time and warning I can."

"So what," Marasi said, downing her shot, quickly pouring another one and downing it. This was

the kind of news that even terrible liquor should help get down. It didn't. "So my gang becomes lackeys for the Blue Dragons? No thanks. I know how they feel about women running the show. Besides, I was here first. Have been for five years. I made this place work. You should be asking me for permission to set up shop."

"So you?re going to go to war with the Blue Dragons?" Toriares said. "Think about it, Marasi--they're a galactic syndicate. You have a gang of 422 people. The Blue Dragons can always bring in more people."

"My people won't cooperate," Marasi said. "They trust me and the rackets I set up. They're not going to toe the line based solely on the Blue Dragon's reputation."

Toriares sighed and poured another shot. "I kind of knew it was pointless getting you to see reason."

Marasi laughed with contempt. "You thought I was going to toe the line and politely surrender just because a big bad syndicate sent my brother to get me drunk and persuade me? I know you?re not that stupid and you can?t think I am."

"I don't."

Marasi sighed. "Then why did you come?"

"Because," Toriares said. He looked at his hands at the rough bronze skin, callused by years and years of confrontations like the one Marasi was trying to force. "When the Blue Dragons decide to eliminate your gang and take over, they're going to send me to eliminate you."

"You?d do that?"

"I don?t have a choice."

"Yes you do, you could quit."

"You could offer to negotiate."

"I won't."

"And I won?t refuse the assignment."

"Toriares," Marasi said, her voice suddenly somber and less defiant. "Think about what you?re saying. You're choosing service over family. We're the only family we've got. You and me."

"What about you?" Toriares said, emptying the bottle into his shotglass. "Would you back down if it meant we didn?t have to kill each other?"

Marasi thought about it and picked up the bottle, peeling the label off. "No," she said. "I?d have to kill you."

"Why?" Toriares asked, downing the shot.

"Family is one thing," Marasi said. "But I made this for myself, alone. It's mine. I?d die to keep it. I came here after the war, just when this place came online--not a credit to my name. But I was determined that this colony was going to be mine. And now I own it. Everyone pays me from Colony Control to the aliens who run the bloodmatches in lowtown. Who the hell are you and your masters to take that?"

"You could go somewhere else," Toriares said, setting the shotglass down. "You did it before, you can do it again"

"You could go somewhere else," Marasi said. "Besides, wherever I went, those half-dead Chinamen you call boss would turn their eyes there before long and we'd be back to square one."

Toriares looked at her again, his eyes sad. "You're saying no."

"That's right," Marasi said, getting up from the table. "No negotiation, no cooperation. This is my colony. The Blue Dragons have no place here, you, Toriares, have no place here. I own Kuran, and if you want to take it, you've got a hell of a fight coming."

"You're pushing your luck," Toriares said, getting up slowly.

"Not worried about my luck," Marasi said. "It was good seeing you again, Toriares. Whatever happens, I'm glad I saw you again and we could talk, you know . . ."

" . . .like family," Toriares said.

"Yeah," Marasi said, walking over and hugging her brother. "I know, whatever happens, you'll remember what's really important, brother," she whispered.

After a time, she let go and walked away, looking over her shoulder for a second as she walked to the back offices of the club. Toriares sighed and threw down a 5-credit slip on the table. It was late, but he had to report in when all he wanted to do was forget this conversation had happened.

Marasi, he thought, you just don?t understand.